this post was submitted on 31 Mar 2024
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Several messaging services that started on PCs already had mobile apps when Whatsapp got big so there must be a bit more to it than that. AIM, Skype, and several others were viable options with existing userbases.
But all those you listed weren't available internationally I believe. Atleast in the US, ask anyone who came to work how they keep in touch with people back home, and they'll likely say whatsapp.
Skype certainly was. It would make an interesting case study - what drove adoption when there were established competitors with more resources?
Phone numbers, phone apps and the international market. Skype was in a lot of places only popular for business, Whatsapp was everyone's very first doorway into a modern messenger app.